I'd like some hot water in my Pearson 33-2. Obviously fresh water needs to cycle into the hot water heater and be heated. The Pearson manual says to make sure the water heater is 100% full before turning on the water heater. I am assuming that if water is coming out when the hot water faucets are on, then the water heater is full and water can safely be heated. Correct? So where do I turn on the water heater? There is no switch on the nav panel. BUT, I do have a hot water heater in the port sail locker. Can someone set me straight, please?
Hot Water (and Heater)
- Thread starter goodintheory
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Maybe its engine heated only. Does it have wires coming out of the heater?. Do any hoses come out of it and go to the engine. Mine is heated either by the engine or 110.
Your water heater should be hooked up to the "Accessories" switch on your AC panel giving you hot water when hooked up to shorepower. If there are black engine hoses running to the water heater, it is hooked up to the engine which supplies hot water when motoring. There is also a relief valve and hose that should be hooked up and directed into the bilge when the temperature of the water becomes superheated to relieve the pressure in the tank. Good luck and good sailing, Ron
Just to add another note to clarify - The hot water from the engine (assuming you have an engine heating system) does not enter the domestic water system. There will be a heat exchanger coil inside the water heater. Any time the engine is running it should be heating the water. The "do not turn on unless the water heater is full" statement applies to the electric element (if there is one). Turning on the electric element in a dry water heater will burnout the element quickly.
Your water heater has a tank that is separated into two chambers. One side contains the fresh water from your tank that comes out of the faucet. The other side contains the engine coolant water that keeps your engine cool when operating. The incorporation of the heat exchanger is part of this system that goes to the water heater. When you are at the dock and plugged into shore power, the electric element heats the fresh water. This element sticks into the side of the tank that contains your fresh water from the tank and is sealed with a big rubber gasket that is compressed and held in place with probably 4 bolts, or some European models actually screw into place via the larger hole with threads. Anyway, as mentioned before, if your electric switch is on, so the element is hot, and there is no fresh water in the tank, the element will burn out. They are easy to replace, if you have good access, but switching it off when the tank in the heater is empty prevents the burn out of the element. That is why it is important to have a switch on the panel. The engine coolant part of the system circulates the same coolant (antifreeze) that is replenished in the reservoir on the top of the engine (like your car) through the other half of the water heater tank. When the engine coolant gets hot, this coolant, sandwiched next to the fresh water from your tank it heats up the fresh water in the water heater. So, to keep this operational, you want to make sure you have an adequate level of antifreeze (50:50 mix) in the system and all air has been bled out (usually only a problem when you replace the heater or have to replace hoses. Otherwise your engine can over heat and so you should consider this before other problem solving if you have recently done plumbing work to your water heater). Hope this helps explain how it all works.
Thanks again for the help on this. Upon closer inspection today in anticipation of winterizing the water heater, I found a power cord that runs into the water heater. Indeed, as was mentioned earlier when on shore power there is a filament that heats the water. My guess is that this is the "Appliances" switch on the nav panel (versus "Accessories" or the more obvious "Water Heater"). Without even trying, my guess is that that element is burned out so. . . either a spring task if I stay North this winter or cold showers in the Bahamas!!!
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